Lifting and transporting device for disabled persons

ABSTRACT

A device for lifting and transporting disabled persons comprising a wheeled base rack on which a first upright support column is fixed while a second support column is movable on the first column. The second column carries arm rests and a seat which is mounted pivotably and releasably.

ite States atent [191 .lohansson [4 1 Feb. 12, 1974 LIFTING ANDTRANSPORTING DEVICE FOR DISABLED PERSONS [76] Inventor: Hans ArneValentin Johansson,

Treharadsvagen 40, Esloy, Sweden [22] Filed: June 30, 1972 21 Appl. No.:267,903

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data July 8, 1971 Sweden 8828/71 Oct.7, 1971 Sweden .1 12687/71 Man 10, 1972 Sweden 3056/72 [52] US. Cl 5/86,5/81, 297/417 [51] Int. Cl... A6lg 7/10 [58] Field of Search. 5/81, 83,86, 87, 89; 297/417, 297/418; 4/237 [5 6] References Cited UNITED STATESPATENTS 3,394,933 7/1968 Benoit .J 5/81 R 3,310,816 3/1967 James et a].5/83 3,374,493 3/1968 Herrera 5/86 3,270,353 9/1966 Berthelsen et a1.5/81 R 3,493,245 2/1970 Nabinger 5/86 3,568,226 3/1971 Mater et a]. 5/86X Primary ExaminerCasmir A. Nunberg Attorney, Agent, or FirmJohn J.Dennemeyer; Arthur Schwartz 5 7] ABSTRACT 14 Claims, 8 Drawing FiguresPatented Feb. 12, 1974 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Patented 4 Sheets-Sheet :2

Fig.3 X HA? Patented Feb. 12, 1974 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Fig. 5

Patented Feb. 12, 1974 4 4 Sheets-Sheet 4.

Fig. 7 M

LIFTING AND TRANSPOR'IING DEVICE FOll DISABLED PERSONS The presentinvention relates to devices for the indoor transportation of disabledpersons and more particularly for transporting a disabled person fromone seat to an other.

A patient who is lying in bed and is paralyzed or who for any otherreason is unable to stand on his legs may be unnecessarily forced tostay in the same place for an extended period of time, either in thecase of a patient staying at a nursing institution or at home. It isrelatively strenuous for a single attendant to help a patient from oneseat to an other. An apparently simple transfer operation, such ashelping a patient who is sitting on a bed to move over to a wheelchair,is tiring for the attendant and involves phases of risk to the patient,especially if the patient lacks sufficient arm strength and coordinatingability to assist himself during the transfer.

In order to remedy these difficulties rather complicated devices, forexample telpher-like lifting devices, have previously been proposed.Wheel-chairs having a particular design for this purpose have also beenproposed, but such wheel-chairs have been relatively complicated andungainly.

The invention is based upon the knowledge that the aforementioneddrawbacks may be eliminated by providing a unit which may be raised andlowered on a basic rolling rack having a vertical supporting column,such unit including an elbow rest, and optionally also a foot rest,together with a supporting surface that may be pushed underneath thepatient when sitting on a bed, or having an other seat in a mannerslightly analogous to this application in the transportation of goods.

The invention will be more fully described hereinafter with reference tothe accompanying drawings in which FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a firstembodiment, FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate a second embodiment, FIGS. 5 and 6illustrate a third embodiment, and FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate a fourthembodiment of the invention.

The first embodiment of the lifting and transporting device according tothe invention is illustrated in FIG. 1 in an elevational view and thesame device is shown in Figure in a plan view. FIG. 3 illustrates thesecond embodiment seen in an elevational view, and FIG. 4 shows thedevice according to FIG. 3 in a plan view. FIG. 5 shows the thirdembodiment in an elevational view, and FIG. 6 illustrates thisembodiment in a plan view. FIG. 7 shows the fourth embodiment in anelevational view, and FIG. 8 illustrates this embodiment in a plan view.

The lifting and transporting device according to FIG. 1 comprises arelatively low basic rack 1, for example made as a framework of tubes.In the embodiment shown the basic rack l is substantially rectangular,open at one short side thereof and provided with wheels 2 pivotallymounted in bearings at the corners thereof. A vertical first column 3 isinserted at the opposite short side of the basic rack and a secondcolumn 4 is displaceably mounted relative to said first column, aseating surface 5 being connected to the second column through an arm 6,which can be pivotally supported by the column 4 in a restricted manner,for example through a hinge, not shown, or through a hook means 7,whereby the seat may be folded upwardly and unhooked, respectively. Thesecond column 4 is provided with two elbow rests 8 at the top thereofand the column may, in a manner known per se, be adjusted to the desiredlevel of altitude by a knob 9 through a screw-nut means, not shown,provided inside the column. For rapid re-setting the knob 9 may beprovided with a handle 10, that may be folded upwardly. Finally, a footrest shaped as a sheet metal unit 11 is provided in the lower part ofthe basic rack 1.

When the device described above with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2 isoperated to transfer a sitting, disabled patient the seat surface 5 isfirst adjusted to the suitable height, whereupon the surface is pushedunderneath the bottom of the patient between his legs. Then the column 4and thus the seat surface 5 may be raised by the knob 9 so that theweight of the patient is transferred to the seat surface and thus thepatient may be freely moved, for example from a bed. By making the basicframe ll very low it may even be freely pushed underneath relatively lowfurniture and may without obstruction be pushed for example underneath abed. By selecting the supporting point of the column essentially in themiddle of one short side of the basic frame a favorable and safe weightdistribution is obtained.

A support for the back, not shown, is releasable from one or both endsof the arms and may be provided between the free ends of the arms 8,said support for example being shaped as a saddle-girth or the like.Furthermore, the lifting and transporting device according to FIGS. 1and 2 may be provided with suitable handles, not shown, for moving thechair.

By using the device according to FIGS. 3 and 4 it is possible to driveso close to a water-closet, a bath-tub or the like, that a patientpositioned on the seat of the lifting and transporting device easilymaybe lowered or in an other manner be transferred to the water-closet orother seating means positioned by a shower-closet, a bath-tub or thelike. Furthermore, the patient may be laterally transferred to the seatand reversing may easily be accomplished by the aid of easily accessiblehandles.

To accomplish these objects, the lifting and transporting deviceaccording to FIGS. 3 and 4 is provided with a basic rack that can berolled, and in contrast to the rack just described comprises a frontpart 12 supporting the first column 3 and two of the wheels 2. The restof the wheels or rolls 2 are each positioned at the free end of one arm13a, 13b, said arms being pivotally connected to the front part 12 ofthe basic rack through vertical pin 14. The arms 13a, 13b are normallyheld in the position illustrated in full lines by blocking means (notshown), the arms being parallel to each other, but by releasing theblocking means the arms may be swung outwardly for example to theposition shown in dotted lines. Thereby the advantage is obtained ofenabling easy manoeuvering of the lifting and transporting device closeto a water-closet or the like, which is wider than the normal distancebetween the two wheel arms 36. In the illustrated embodiment the columns3 and 4 form the piston and the cylinder, respectively, of a liftingdevice actuated by a pressurized medium. A pumping arm 15 is used forthe displacement of the columns, said arm being conveniently accessibleto the patient.

In order to facilitate the lateral alighting and entering of thepatient, the elbow rests may be individually displaceable. To obtainthis object two sleeves-16 are provided at a distance from each otherin'the upper part of the column 4, said sleeves receiving tubes 17a, 17bforming the elbow rests and being displaceable and adapted to be locked.The two tubes 17a, 17b have handles 18a, 18b at the two ends thereof,said handles being provided for the transfer of the lifting andtransporting device in different directions. If necessary, fasteningmeans 19 for supporting belts 20 or the like may be provided on thetubes 17a, 17b preventing patients having difficulties to control theirmovements from falling forwards or backwards. These fastening means arealso adjustable to select the most suitable position. A table 21 may beprovided between the sleeves 16 or the tubes 17 in front of the patient,said table preferably being displaceably and foldably or releasablyclamped between the two tubes 17.

A foot plate 22 is fastened in a manner similar to the table 21 to thebasic rack or may be fixedly connected to the same.

According to the embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 5-8 the patient alsohas a support for his feet at the same time so that his toilet visitsare considerably facilitated. For these purposes foot rests raising andlowering together with the seat surface are provided and the seat isshaped as a saddle while the basic rack supports a water-closet seatsubstantially shaped as a horse shoe.

The essentially new according to FIGS. 5 and 6 lies in the transversefoot rests 23 being provided at the lower end of a tube or a bar 24,said bar being telescopically displaceable in the longer, vertical leg25 of a supporting means of substantially reverse L-shape and theshorter horizontal leg 26 of which is connected to the upper end of thecolumn 4 in a suitable manner. The lower leg 25 engages through a heel27 at the lower end thereof an axial supporting and sliding band 28 onthe outer jacket of the hydraulic cylinder 3. The fastening means 7 forthe seat 5 extends radially through an extended axial slot or recess(not shown) in the side of the tube 25. The tube or the bar 24 may belocked relative to the tube 25 by a handle or a knob 29 in such a mannerthat the seat surface and the foot rest are adjustable together in theheight direction to a suitable initial position no matter how for thepiston 4 extends from the cylinder 3.

The vertical distance from the seat surface to the foot rest may beadjustable, in a manner not shown, to fit patients for example havingdifferent physical structures.

A suitable support for the back 30 being rigid or made e.g., from thesaddle girth is at one or both of its ends releasably connected to theends of the elbow rest 8 having U-shape.

The embodiment according to FIGS. 7 and 8 only differs from the onedescribed above in that the basic frame 1 of the lifting andtransporting device is provided with fixedly secured or releasablyconnected columns or a substantially Y-shaped column 32 to which Theinvention is not intended to be limited to these exemplifyingembodiments but may be modified in the details thereof within the scopeof the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A lifting and transporting device for disabled persons comprising:

a. a base member,

b. a first substantially vertical column mounted on said base member,

c. a second column telescopically mounted relative to said first column,

d. a seat,

c. said second column having a first means for supporting said seat inan operative position at a substantially right angle relative to saidsecond column and for permitting movement of said seat to an inoperativeposition,

f. said seat being saddle-shaped and having a narrow part coupled tosaid first seat supporting means in close proximity to said secondcolumn,

g. said second column having a second means located above said seat forsupporting a pair of laterally spaced armrests in an operative positionsubstantially parallel to each other and to a surface upon which thedevice rests,

h. power means for displacing said second column relative to said firstcolumn, and

i. means for operating said power means, said operating means beinglocated approximately at the top of said second column for enabling aperson sitting on the seat to operate the power means.

2. A device according to claim 1, wherein the means for displacing thecolumns is included within at least one of the columns and a knob isprovided at the end of the second column, said knob being rotatablymounted around an axis substantially co-axial with the column andserving to cause the displacement of the columns at least in onedisplacement direction by the turning thereof.

3. A device according to claim 1, wherein the means for displacing thecolumns comprises a screw secured to one column, and a nut secured tothe other column.

4. A device according to claim 1, wherein the columns form a cylinderand a piston in a lifting device actuated by a pressurized medium.

5. A lifting device according to claim 1, wherein the base comprises afront part having a pair of front wheels thereon and two arms pivotallymounted about substantially vertical axes on said front part, said armscarrying adjacent the free end thereof a pair of rear wheels in such away that the distance between the rear wheels may be varied by pivotingthe arms in a direction towards or away from each other.

6. A lifting device according to claim 5, wherein the arms are normallyheld substantially parallel to each other by a blocking means and have adistance between the rear wheels of the arms essentially correspondingto the distance between the front wheels.

7. A device according to claim 1, wherein the arm rests comprise a loopessentially having a U-shape, the body part of which is connected to theupper part of the second column and the legs of which extend backwardlyrelative to said colums.

8. A device according to claim 1, wherein the second column in the upperend thereof supports two essentially horizontally positioned guides fortubular shaped elements having stop members shaped as handles at theirends to limit the pushing movement of each element relative to theguides, whereby the guides are positioned at-such a distance from eachother and form such an angle with each other that the elements serve asarm rests for the person utilizing the device.

9. A device according to claim 8 including means for bridging saidtubular shaped elements, means for displaceably fastening said bridgingmeans on said tubular shaped elements at various locations therealongwhereby said bridging means supports the back and stomach of the personutilizing the device.

10. A device as defined in claim 1 wherein said armrests aredisplaceable for movement to an inoperative position to facilitate thetransfer of disabled persons.

11. A device according to claim ll, wherein the second column has aguide means parallel to the longitudinal direction thereof to guide aunit which is adjustable in the height direction and lockable in adesired distance between the foot rest and the seat independently of thedisplacement of the column, said unit in the lower part thereofcomprising a rail having preferably laterally extending parts serving asa foot rest and the upper part of the unit having a mounting for theseat.

12. A device according to claim Ill, wherein the distance between thefoot rest and the seat is adjustable since the rail may be adjustedrelative to the mounting.

13. A device according to claim 11, wherein the foot rest istelescopically supported and adjustable in the vertical directionrelative to the seat.

14. A device according to claim 1, wherein the base comprises anothertwo columns to support a watercloset seat having an open front, saidwater-closet seat with the main opening thereof being centered relativeto the seat, said seat being of such a shape and dimension that it maybe pushed down in a vertical movement through the main opening of thewater-closet seat from above, whereby guides are provided in connectionwith said water-closet seat, columns and base for a collecting vesselthat is insertable underneath the water-closet

1. A lifting and transporting device for disabled persons comprising: a.a base member, b. a first substantially vertical column mounted on saidbase member, c. a second column telescopically mounted relative to saidfirst column, d. a seat, e. said second column having a first means forsupporting said seat in an operative position at a substantially rightangle relative to said second column and for permitting movement of saidseat to an inoperative position, f. said seat being saddle-shaped andhaving a narrow Part coupled to said first seat supporting means inclose proximity to said second column, g. said second column having asecond means located above said seat for supporting a pair of laterallyspaced armrests in an operative position substantially parallel to eachother and to a surface upon which the device rests, h. power means fordisplacing said second column relative to said first column, and i.means for operating said power means, said operating means being locatedapproximately at the top of said second column for enabling a personsitting on the seat to operate the power means.
 2. A device according toclaim 1, wherein the means for displacing the columns is included withinat least one of the columns and a knob is provided at the end of thesecond column, said knob being rotatably mounted around an axissubstantially co-axial with the column and serving to cause thedisplacement of the columns at least in one displacement direction bythe turning thereof.
 3. A device according to claim 1, wherein the meansfor displacing the columns comprises a screw secured to one column, anda nut secured to the other column.
 4. A device according to claim 1,wherein the columns form a cylinder and a piston in a lifting deviceactuated by a pressurized medium.
 5. A lifting device according to claim1, wherein the base comprises a front part having a pair of front wheelsthereon and two arms pivotally mounted about substantially vertical axeson said front part, said arms carrying adjacent the free end thereof apair of rear wheels in such a way that the distance between the rearwheels may be varied by pivoting the arms in a direction towards or awayfrom each other.
 6. A lifting device according to claim 5, wherein thearms are normally held substantially parallel to each other by ablocking means and have a distance between the rear wheels of the armsessentially corresponding to the distance between the front wheels.
 7. Adevice according to claim 1, wherein the arm rests comprise a loopessentially having a U-shape, the body part of which is connected to theupper part of the second column and the legs of which extend backwardlyrelative to said colums.
 8. A device according to claim 1, wherein thesecond column in the upper end thereof supports two essentiallyhorizontally positioned guides for tubular shaped elements having stopmembers shaped as handles at their ends to limit the pushing movement ofeach element relative to the guides, whereby the guides are positionedat such a distance from each other and form such an angle with eachother that the elements serve as arm rests for the person utilizing thedevice.
 9. A device according to claim 8 including means for bridgingsaid tubular shaped elements, means for displaceably fastening saidbridging means on said tubular shaped elements at various locationstherealong whereby said bridging means supports the back and stomach ofthe person utilizing the device.
 10. A device as defined in claim 1wherein said armrests are displaceable for movement to an inoperativeposition to facilitate the transfer of disabled persons.
 11. A deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein the second column has a guide meansparallel to the longitudinal direction thereof to guide a unit which isadjustable in the height direction and lockable in a desired distancebetween the foot rest and the seat independently of the displacement ofthe column, said unit in the lower part thereof comprising a rail havingpreferably laterally extending parts serving as a foot rest and theupper part of the unit having a mounting for the seat.
 12. A deviceaccording to claim 11, wherein the distance between the foot rest andthe seat is adjustable since the rail may be adjusted relative to themounting.
 13. A device according to claim 11, wherein the foot rest istelescopically supported and adjustable in the vertical directionrelative to the seat.
 14. A device according to claim 1, wherein thebase compRises another two columns to support a water-closet seat havingan open front, said water-closet seat with the main opening thereofbeing centered relative to the seat, said seat being of such a shape anddimension that it may be pushed down in a vertical movement through themain opening of the water-closet seat from above, whereby guides areprovided in connection with said water-closet seat, columns and base fora collecting vessel that is insertable underneath the water-closet seat.